Asbestos News Roundup: 4.4.13 – Asbestos in Construction

April 4th, 2013. By LucyC

A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.

Construction Materials Containing Asbestos

Many of the materials used in construction, including welding, pipe fitting, and millwright work, contained, or in some cases still contain asbestos. By the mid-20th century asbestos was being used in fire retardant coatings, concrete, bricks, pipes and fireplace cement, heat, fire, and acid resistant gaskets, pipe insulation, ceiling insulation, fireproof drywall, flooring, roofing, lawn furniture, and drywall joint compound.

It wasn’t until the 1980s that the knowledge of the dangers of asbestos exposure and related asbestos disease became more widely known amongst the general public. Consequently, millions of men and women likely worked on or around asbestos without any protection for decades.

It would not be uncommon for people to work with asbestos-containing products, either installing or removing them, which would send asbestos fibers into the air. The fibers are inhaled, and settle on people’s clothing—and that’s how asbestos disease begins. People who become ill from asbestos are usually exposed to it on a regular basis, hence the hundreds of asbestos lawsuits we are seeing now.

Asbestos Lawsuits

Charleston, WV: The wife and children of the late Louis Darjean have filed as asbestos lawsuit naming Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Shell Oil, Huntsman Petrochemical, Guard-line, Triplex, Elliott Turbomachinery, Yarway Corporation and Zurn Industries as defendants responsible for Darjean’s diagnosis of asbestos lung cancer and subsequent death.

Specifically, the asbestos lawsuit claims that Darjean’s illness was caused by his exposure to the lethal carcinogen as fibers and dust during his work as a supervisor at a local refinery.

Pamela Herbert, Mary Darjean and Ricky Darjean filed a lawsuit against on February 5 in Jefferson County District Court, which claims that although the defendants knew about the harms of asbestos for decades, they failed to warn Louis Darjean of the product’s danger and failed to ensure that its employees were not exposed to the carcinogen.

The Darjeans are seeking a judgment in excess of the minimum jurisdictional limits of Jefferson County District Court and exemplary or punitive damages, plus interest at the legal rate, costs and other relief the court deems just. (wvrecord.com)

Pittsburgh, PA: Frank K. Nethken, 82, a former mayor of the City of Cumberland in Maryland, and his wife Velma, have filed a mass tort asbestos injury claim after Mr. Nethken received a diagnosis of lung cancer on January 30. Mr. Nethken was mayor from 1978 to 1982.

The lawsuit, filed on March 25th, names CSX Transportation as the defendant, and alleges the company exposed Mr. Nethken to products containing asbestos during his working years. The lawsuit claims that Mr. Nethken’s lung cancer diagnosis was a direct result of that exposure.

Frank Nethken worked as a United States Navy ground controller, as a machinist at Cumberland Steel, as a rocket inspector for Allegheny Ballistics Lab, (now ATK Rocket Center in West Virginia), and as a machinist for B&O Railroad. He was exposed to asbestos in all of these positions, the lawsuit alleges. Furthermore, Nethken believes he was exposed to asbestos fiber or asbestos products manufactured, sold, distributed or otherwise placed into the stream of commerce by the defendants.

The Nethkens are seeking damages in excess of $100,000, plus interest, costs and unspecified punitive damages. (pennsylvaniarecord.com)

Pittsburgh, PA: A 92-year–old man has filed a mass tort asbestos claim, alleging he suffers from pulmonary asbestosis as a result of working with products containing asbestos fiber. William J. Filandino and his wife, Edith, claim that on February 14, 2013, William Filandino was diagnosed with pulmonary asbestosis, which causes pulmonary impairment and disability causally related to asbestos exposure and asbestos disease with symptoms, including but not limited to, shortness of breath.

Filandino claims that he was exposed to asbestos during portions of his employment with Nicolet Industries, during which he worked as a spray painter, shipper, dryer, and utility man. The lawsuit also claims he was also exposed to asbestos while performing home improvement work and vehicular maintenance work through the course of his career which included working as a laborer, saw cutter and machinist.

Notably, Filandino states in his asbestos lawsuit that he also served in the United States Marine Corp.,from 1943 to 1945.

The defendants named in the Filandino complaint are: Asbestos Corp. Limited; Bell Asbestos Mines LTD; BNS Co.; Certain-Teed Corp.; DAP Inc.; The Drever Group; Foster Wheeler Corp.; Honeywell International Inc.; IPA Systems Inc.; Keeler/Dorr-Oliver Boiler Co.; Metropolitan Life Insurance Co.; Pep Boys; Union Carbide Corp.; and Weinstein Supply Co. (pennsylvaniarecord.com)

Pittsburgh, PA: Crystal Painter, of Shepherdstown, WV, has filed an asbestos mass tort claim on behalf of her late husband, Timothy E. Painter, who, in April 2010, was diagnosed with asbestos-related lung cancer. Mr. Painter was in his early 50s at the time, lawsuit states.

The lawsuit alleges Mr. Painter’s cancer was a direct result of his exposure to asbestos containing products while working as a trackman and machine operator for B&O Railroad and CSX Transportation in West Virginia from June 1979 to December 1990, and as a signal maintainer for CSX in Maryland from January 1991 to May 2010. The lawsuit, which names CSX as a defendant, said that Timothy Painter might have also been exposed to asbestos at other worksites, although investigation is continuing.

Mrs. Painter is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages, plus interest and $50,000 in punitive damages on behalf of her late husband. (pennsylvaniarecord.com)

 

Tags: Asbestos, asbestos lawsuit, Asbestos Mesothelioma

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